Alright, let’s talk about dying my hair. Recently I decided to go for a dark red look using henna. I’ve heard all sorts of things about henna, mostly how it’s a natural way to dye your hair and supposedly good for you, too. So, I thought, why not give it a shot?
First off, I gathered my supplies. I bought some pure henna powder from a local store. The packaging said it was 100% natural, which sounded good to me. Besides the henna, I grabbed a couple of lemons, some plastic gloves, an old towel, and a glass bowl. Remember, metal bowls are a no-go with henna, as they might react with the dye.
I started by mixing the henna powder with warm water. The instructions on the packet suggested adding a bit of lemon juice to get a deeper red. I squeezed in about a tablespoon of lemon juice, I figured a little extra acidity couldn’t hurt, right? I mixed it all up until it had the consistency of thick yogurt, making sure there were no lumps. This part was a bit messy, but kind of fun, like making a mud pie.
Then I applied the mixture to my hair. I divided my hair into sections and applied the paste from the roots to the tips, making sure every strand was coated. This was the most time-consuming part. I wrapped my hair in plastic wrap and then put an old towel around my head to keep the heat in. I’d heard that heat helps the henna develop better, so I even used a hairdryer for a few minutes to warm things up.
I left the henna on for about four hours. Some people leave it on overnight, but I wasn’t that patient. After four hours, I rinsed it out in the shower. The water ran orange for quite a while. I just used water, no shampoo, as advised by the henna experts online.
- Prepare the henna paste: Mixed henna powder with warm water and a tablespoon of lemon juice.
- Apply to hair: Sectioned my hair and applied the paste evenly from roots to tips.
- Wrap and wait: Wrapped my hair in plastic wrap, then an old towel, and used a hairdryer to add some heat.
- Rinse: Rinsed out the henna with just water after four hours.
Here are the main steps I followed:
After rinsing, I towel-dried my hair and took a look. At first, it was more orange than I expected, especially at the roots. But I knew that henna takes a couple of days to fully develop its color. I waited, and sure enough, over the next 48 hours, the color deepened into a nice, rich dark red. It was exactly what I was hoping for! My hair felt soft and looked shiny, too, which was a nice bonus.
Overall, I’m pretty happy with how it turned out. It was a bit of work, and the waiting was the hardest part, but the results were worth it. Plus, it felt good to use something natural on my hair instead of harsh chemicals. If you’re thinking about trying henna, I’d say go for it! Just be prepared for a bit of a process and give the color some time to develop. It’s a fun experiment, and you might just love the results as much as I do!
Discussion about this post